Nielsen: 20.6 million watched inauguration

Posted: January 23, 2013 - 11:46pm

NEW YORK (AP) — Nielsen says an estimated 20.6 million people watched President Barack Obama's second inauguration on TV, sharply down from his first.

The company, which measures television audience, says the number represents just over half of the 37.8 million people who saw Obama's first inauguration in 2009. Eighteen networks aired some part of this year's inaugural ceremony on Monday.

According to Nielsen records, this year's ceremony was the second least-watched inauguration since 1969. It beat only President George W. Bush's second ceremony in 2005, which was seen by 15.5 million.

The most-watched inauguration since 1969 was President Ronald Reagan's first oath-taking in 1981, which was seen by 41.8 million people.

NBC had the largest number of viewers among broadcast networks on Monday, with CNN the cable news leader.

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that people would watch such events via C-Span. As everyone knows, C-Span is a service provided by our cable companies. NO government influence or advertisements show up in commentary. We all know that 6 cents of our bills each month go to fund C-Span, so WE pay for it and WE own that airtime. Those who get the people to be on C-Span try very hard to present all sides of an issue without voicing opinions.

I watched the inauguration almost all day via C-Span but I DID switch to Fox and MSNBC for short periods of time just to see how those two channels were presenting material -- commenting on what was happening. Of course, being more liberal, I agreed more with MSNBC, but FOX was very obviously critical of everything. They were not about to be complimentary about anything (as I watched).

I do not like to be talked "down" to when I watch events on television. When talking heads try to explain what what someone else "meant" when they are being interviewed, I resent that. *I* can understand well enough that someone else does not have to explain to me what the interviewee said. Voters need to THINK FOR THEMSELVES and not accept opinion and propaganda as "truth."